Not many can claim that they were in the Theatre Management and Producing programme at Columbia University. The programme only takes in 10 people at a time, and Serene Lim (BSocSc 2011) was one of the few in her year – and the only Singaporean at that time – to secure the golden opportunity.
Serene’s time in SMU spurred her to pursue a career in theatre management. In her first year, through a Business Study Mission (BSM) to New York, she had the chance to visit The Broadway League which gave her insights into the larger theatre industry. The following year, Professor Mark Chong invited Serene to be his Teaching Assistant (TA) and that stint brought her to her second BSM, to Los Angeles and New York. These experiences contributed to Serene’s resolve to pursue a career in theatre management, and upon graduating from SMU with a Bachelor of Social Sciences, she enrolled for her Masters in Fine Arts (Theatre Management and Producing) at Columbia University. To sweeten the experience, she scored a coveted internship at The Broadway League in New York, which further exposed her to the commercial theatre industry. The rest, as they say, is history.
Ten years on, Serene is still living in New York and heading the Customer Success division in an entertainment technology company that creates software enabling remote collaborations between creatives in Film, TV and Theatre. She thoroughly enjoys her life in a vibrant and diverse city; and wants her family to experience living as a minority. She shares her perspective that this would be important for her child to learn to be open and accepting of everyone alike.
While success seems to have come naturally to Serene, she was quick to add that it has not always been smooth-sailing.
Her first application to SMU was rejected and it was only after she appealed did she receive an acceptance letter. In addition, she faced numerous challenges balancing part-time work with full-time studies; and this was a true test of her time management and discipline to adhere to strict schedules. Still, Serene took it in her stride and saw the journey as an opportunity to enjoy the learning process and forge bonds with like-minded people.
Serene believes in the importance of taking every learning point out of each experience and applying it to future situations. “It is about knowing your skills sets, and using it the right way,” Serene said.
She emphasized how her experiences had given her the time, space and opportunities to explore various avenues in life. That helped her grow and develop into the person she is today, living a full life with a happy family, and a satisfying career in the vibrant city of New York.
